The ESA's General Studies Programme (GSP) has started this year the SysNova: a new initiative to get the most brilliant proposals for the development of new technologies in the space field.

SysNova initiative is a technology assessment scheme using “technology challenges” and competition to survey a comparatively large number of alternative solutions and recognises the critical role of joint studies by both academic and industrial institutions across ESA Member States in this exploratory phase.

This competition gives industry and universities the opportunity to work and develop their solutions in a field that is the cutting edge of technology par excellence.  
  
Every year the General Studies Programme will propose few topics of relevance to the exploration of potential technology needs beyond current ESA programmes. Teams composed by people from both academies, research field and industry can submit their proposals and compete for a final prize.

Announcement of Opportunity 2012 - SEALS:

This AO is called SEALS (Sustainable near-Earth Access and Life Support) and it is focused on the following key technologies:

• Efficient orbit Transfer i.e. propulsion
• Autonomy
• Energy efficiency and optimal power production, conditioning and storage
• Life support and monitoring systems

For the 2012 the proposed Technology Reference Studies are related to: changing the orbit of a small asteroid or space debris without making physical contact with them , how to hit one of the components of a binary asteroid and how to sustain life in the interplanetary space environment.

The first Announcement of Opportunity of the SysNova initiative is available on EMITS and it is possible to submit the Challenge Response until the 3rd September. The schedule of SEALS is shown in the image below.